BBC Gardeners’ World Magazine Podcast

Tracy Wilson, MBE from the Animal and Plant Health Agency, the government department on the frontline of protecting our plants from pests and diseases, discusses what biosecurity means and what we can do as gardeners to help stop threats before they spread to keep our gardens and countryside safe and thriving. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

There's something genuinely magical about heading out into your garden or local woodland on a crisp winter morning, secateurs in hand, gathering armfuls of evergreen foliage. It connects us to those ancient midwinter traditions which go back thousands of years to when our ancestors celebrated the winter solstice. They understood that bringing evergreen branches indoors was a promise that spring would return. And don’t we all still find ourselves wishing for the same in the depths of winter? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Discover Adam's early gardening influences and the people who have helped him throughout his career - from his younger years with Scruffy Nan in the garden, to his informative years in Devon and with landscape gardener Geoff Hamilton. This podcast was recorded at Gardeners’ World Live with Nicki Chapman. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Lydia Millen has amassed millions of devoted followers across Instagram, TikTok and YouTube, showcasing her idyllic life in the countryside and her gorgeous garden. Yet such fame is not without its price. Lydia shares her experience of the darker side of social media, how gardening and nature have transformed her outlook on life, and helped her be her best self. And why she has swapped designer Hermès handbags for pottering in her greenhouse. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Now is a great time to mulch. It's a chance to get out in the garden and do something practical when everything seems to be on the wane and dying down. It's also a good physical workout, a nice way to use a chilly but sunny day. You might think mulching is just about feeding the plants, but it's really about looking after the soil itself, the life beneath our feet, and it's easy to overlook. When you mulch, you’re adding nutrients and feeding the soil life. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Gardening can provide us with many benefits, from being in fresh air, surrounded by nature, exposing us to sunlight and increased levels of vitamin D, bringing enjoyment from a colourful flower border, and dietary benefits too from the food we grow, to name a few. Being in the garden and in outdoor spaces can also be a fantastic way to stay fit and healthy. Jacqueline Hooton’s garden gym helps women in their 50s and 60s to become strong and fit and stay healthy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Amazon may feel far away, but what happens there affects all of us. It's a storehouse of biodiversity and natural climate regulator and home to countless species that we've barely begun to study. Dr. Rosa Vasquez, Espinoza takes us into the amazing world of life beneath the rainforest canopy to explore what's at stake, what's still being discovered, and why the Amazon matters more than ever. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The time from November to March is ideal for planting bare root plants - whether trees, shrubs or hedging - and who doesn’t want more plants in their garden? Whether you’re planning to plant trees to your gardening space, adding some native mixed hedging or looking to increase your border with shrubs, choosing bare root plants is a great option. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Allotments offer the opportunity to have an ongoing relationship with nature and the land for nurturing and growing, building communities, sharing knowledge, seeds and plants. Each allotment plot is as unique as its location. Poet, nature writer, social anthropologist and allotment historian JC Niala, explores the connections between community, nature, and culture and how allotment sites can be utopias. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

If your garden is looking tired or you've moved into a new home and inherited a scruffy or unloved plot, turning it into a garden you love can seem like a daunting task. What do you do with shrubs that have grown wild or a patio that's crumbling under your feet? Join plantsman, author, designer, and TV presenter, Nick Bailey, who's recently renovated his own garden and discover how to give your garden a new lease of life. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It may not be sexy and it certainly isn’t about instant gratification, but it is free and easy: leaf mould. One of the easiest, most effective, and completely free soil improvers you can make at home, made from a mix of green and brown garden waste and kitchen scraps. Leaf mould iis rich in nutrients and created entirely from decomposed leaves. It doesn’t feed your plants directly, as it’s low in nutrients, but it’s like magic for the structure of your soil. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Peat bogs can store twice as much carbon as forests, are among the most carbon rich ecosystems on earth, and provide a home to many mammals, birds, insects, and amphibians.  Presenter, writer and horticulturalist Alys Fowler, known for her botanical passion and ecological awareness, urges us to sink deep into the dark earths of these rugged places to appreciate the value of peatlands natural resources, beauty and richness. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Front gardens are often different from back gardens and tend to be a little bit smaller. They have to be functional and are usually quite visible too. They offer the added advantage of environmental benefits, such as improved air quality, and can also provide habitats for wildlife. So, how do you make your front garden appealing while also making it work for you too? Arit Anderson has some recommendations. Recorded at the Gardeners' World Autumn Fair. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Is there anything more cheerful than coming home on a cold spring day and being greeted by a pot full of colourful tulips? Spring may seem a while off but now’s the time to rip open some bags of bulbs and get planting and November is the ideal time to get them in the ground or in your pots. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Getting older doesn't have to mean that we stop doing the things we love. Gardening can be physically demanding, but it can also be hugely beneficial in keeping our minds and bodies active. Carol has been gardening for decades. At an age when many might have long retired and be slowing down, discover how she has adapted her garden and the way she gardens over the years. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices